Party at the North Pole

It was magical. More than I ever could have imagined. I cried last night watching all these wide-eyed little girls take it all in, and then I cried all over again this morning looking back at it all. Because I’m kind of a crier…and I’m okay with it.

It really felt like the North Pole.

I took a few pictures during the day before the girls got there…

…but the magic unfolded about a billion fold once the stars came out.

And then little girls, dressed in their jammies, began to arrive and the rest was history.It all started with the Reindeer Food Bar–a buffet of reindeer treats for the girls to choose from to make their own special blends for Christmas Eve (a tradition–you sprinkle it in your driveway Christmas Eve to lure the reindeer, and then they have something to munch on while Santa’s in your house). Oats and raisins, bread crumbs and cocoa…and special ingredients like glitter and flying powder.

And then a letter from Santa. He told the girls he had lost some things in our neighborhood and needed some help finding them.

The girls were happy to help, eagerly assembling into a long train. They set out with flashlights, scouring trees and lawns and sidewalks for Santa’s cocoa mug, his pocketwatch, Rudolf’s collar, Mrs. Clause’s cookie sprinkles and a long list of other lost goods. Santa’s so irresponsible.

Found his cocoa mug!

And that pocketwatch.

Somewhere between the end of our driveway and the first lost treasure, the crowd errupted into excited squeals. They spotted an elf, running fast across the street, diving into bushes with a jingle. My cheeks were aching–I laughed, I cried, I couldn’t stand it. I wasn’t sure how the elf would go over–there was the small chance of the Traumatic Christmas Party Bust of 2012 that sent kids screaming and crying back home–but I couldn’t have asked for a better response. They went bananas–the lose-your-breath kind. They smiled, they pointed, they excitedly screamed. I teared up when I saw one of the girls run, beaming, to her mom. “I saw him! I saw him! I saw a real elf! I really did.” I knew they’d probably never forget that moment. We never saw that elf’s face, but he was with us, zig-zagging quickly a couple driveways ahead and suddenly disappearing.

It’s not a Christmas party until someone reads “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas…” (thank you, Dad, for adding so much magic to our party).

And the girls each brought a gift to exchange.

Party favors: Homemade Pillow Spray. I found several recipes online and ended up using water, 12-15 drops each of Spearmint (I liked it better than the peppermint) and Eucalyptus essential oils and a tiny bit of alcohol (vodka works) to keep the water and oil from separating. I found the spritzer bottles in the travel sized toiletries at Walmart.

We finished the night shimmying and shakin’ our groove thang to Christmas carols in the driveway. Past our bedtime, just the way it’s supposed to go.

I’ve been smiling ever since.

“He who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe is as good as dead; his eyes are closed.” ~Albert EinsteinFriday Photo Dump:Chris Schuette CD winners:

#4, Courtney: Aw, I love that you commented about loving that picture so much your heart hurts. I tell my lidos tht as I’m rocking them to bed some nights . . .’i love you all the way to the moon and back 600 million times, I love you do much my heart hurts so good with love’.

#181, Meredith: Love the bit about the eggs and red glitter…so my world right now!!

#71, Jen: Maybe I’m immature, but your comment when Nella was showing Laynie her food made me laugh out loud. They are SO cute

#267, Sara: Love your blog; have been distracted with life and haven’t read in a while! So refreshing to be back! Love the “sea food” pic 🙂

#11, Katy: This post made me laugh. Thank you it was very much needed today. Love the pictures. 🙂

#241, Susan: What a special treat to be able to savor those moments with your girls! I also love to find new musicians. Thanks!

#43, Michelle: How cute! I love Florida in winter for the simple fact that days like that can still happen. Nothing beats a cold beach day playing in the sand. And the kissing pictures are the cutest!!

Returning sponsor, Every Scrap Countz (maker of those adorable crocheted headbands) has something new in her shop, and we are loving it, especially since it comes at an appropriate time when our temperatures are finally dropping enough to allow cute head wear.

Enter the owl hat.

Lord have mercy, I love my girls in hats, and this one is especially lovely with its colors, its braided ties and those cute pointy ears.

Use Code KELLE for 15% off, and one comment will be randomly selected from this post to win a free owl hat, courtesy of Every Scrap Countz.

Have a great rest of the weekend.

ADDENDUM: Party Details if you’d like to recreate some magic.

Invite—I designed it and had it printed at WHCC. Girls were asked to bring a flashlight and a $10 gift to exchange.Milk Bottles–Starbucks Bottled Coffee drinks like this one. Available at grocery stores. I just saved the bottles, removed labels (use a little Goof Off), and washed.Retro Straws–my favorite Etsy party novelty shop, Hey Yo Yo. I order stuff from them for all my parties. Their shop is loaded with inexpensive adorable retro treats.Christmas Baker’s Twine–It’s actually fine yarn. You can get a huge skein at Joanns that will last for 10 years.Red labels on Milk Bottles and Reindeer Food Jars: THESE ONES from Martha Stewart Crafts (available at Michaels and Joanns). Invite, Signs and Food Tags–I designed and printed myself. If anyone can tell me how to share printables and where to put them, I’d be happy to share.Party Favors–Pillow Mist made with travel size mister bottles I bought at Walmart (in trial sized toiletry section). I mixed water with 10 drops each of spearmint and eucalyptus essential oils, plus about a teaspoon of vodka (to keep the water and oil from separating). I also found peppermint lipgloss in Target dollar section.Peppermint “Red Carpet” leading into house–one roll of Christmas wrapping paper, secured to cement with duct tapeChristmas decor–Small Christmas village trees (I got mine for 79 cents a piece at Walmart), tealights, wood slabs (Brett cut from a fallen branch), a bag of fake snow, leftover white “fur” fabric from Lainey’s ballet recital costume, paper snowflakes we cut out ourselves (free!). The rest was pulled from Christmas decorations in our attic.

Reindeer Food–We used disposable bread tins, measuring cups and the following choices: oats, raisins, bread crumbs, crushed potato chips, cocoa, flying powder (flour), red and silver glitter. The girls created their concoctions in Ball jam jars.Scavenger Hunt–Santa left the following things along a path in our neighborhood: his sleigh key, a cocoa cup, Rudolf’s collar, Mrs. Clause’s cookie sprinkles, a large candy cane, his white glove, his hat, special greens the reindeer eat (a bunch of parsley), an ornament, his driver’s license, his pocket watchFood: Snickerdoodles, sugar cookies and my favorite candy cane cookies. And milk. Easy and inexpensive.Elf: Talk to Santa. He controls them, and I have nothing to do with it. The rest of it? When in doubt, hang more white lights. And then more. And then one more strand.The key to the ambience at any party lies in a simple recipe: low lighting, candles and music. Crank up those Christmas carols, Baby.

Comments

What a beautiful night of memories that you have made for all of those little girls. I’m hoping to start some memorable traditions with my little girl who just turned one.Can’t wait for this Christmas.

Oh Kelle every little thing is perfect! My goodness you are a wonder!! Not one of those girls will forget that ever. I love the Santa treasure hunt, with the mystery elf, I’ve got the silliest grin on my face just picturing it! You are the queen of flying the holiday freak flag, and I mean that in a totally amazed and you-go-girl way. Wonder if the owl hats can be delivered to oz, I know my little niece would look cute in one.

OH.MY.GOODNESS…..AMAZING. This made me cry! I either want to be a kid all over again or can not wait until my little one is old enough to do this!!! Thanks as always for being for creative, inspiring and kind in letting as all in!!!

Kelle…Thank you. Lila can’t stop talking about the “magical night.” You know I’m not a superfluous girl, and yet I’m going to say it again: THIS is what it’s all about. You’ve outdone yourself. The party was not only a success, it was a memory. One of the best. One that I, and more importantly, one that Lila will carry forever as what Christmas is truly all about.Love.Jen

I love that party idea….whenever I have kids I will have to do this. YAY I won a CD! 🙂 I’m going to give it to my mom for Christmas. She loves music like that! and I love those owl hats they are super cute

oh my GOOODDDDDDNESSSSSS~!!!! I wanna cry because of how much magic you managed to ooze through my computer screen! I LOVE IT ALL so much that I just might recreate this for my little girls and her friends. What a fab fab fab idea.

Wow. I don’t even know what to say. That night for girls must have been amazing. Thank you for the inspiration that you always give me..slow down and enjoy life. Thank you. I am so happy I found your blog. I just love it!

I am in awe of your creativity, energy and zest for enjoying life and having fun! All the details that you put into this party are amazing!! While I may not ever be able to complete a party quite as cool as this one, I am definitely inspired to try!! Thank you SO much for sharing!

I am in tears, envy and serious planning trying to figure out how I can pull off this amazing idea before Christmas for my boys. You are awesome. I may have to wait until next year, but I AM doing this! Love, love, love it!

Oh my goodness. I am a crier too, so I obviously teared up while reading this post. You are incredible…I’m so impressed my all of the tiny, perfect details of that party. I’m taking notes for when I have kids…I hope I’m as fun as you!

We have a Christmas tradition of reading The Night Before Christmas on Christmas Eve – 3 littles in their jammies, pillowcase stockings hung up in our fireplace. I sew a different Xmas thing made of felt onto the pillowcase each year, and this year it’s going to be a robin, as we have a very friendly one in the veg patch! This year we are starting a new tradition of new jammies on Christmas Eve – even for Grandma!Your posts help remind me to stand in awe and wonder, even when it feels like I have to hold on to something anchored down for fear of being blown away by all the busy-ness of our lives…so thankyou!P.S I’m a crier too – one of my girls has taken to whispering “You’re not going to cry, are you!?” when we settle down to watch a film!

Kelle, you are an amazing Mama! Those little girls are so lucky to have such a creative and imaginative Mommy like you! I love how high you fly your Christmas freak flag! What a magical night you created for those little girls and their Mama’s!

Good Lord woman do you ever sleep! 😉 seriously talented fabulous stuff! Love it. reindeer flight path and all! One of my favourite memories of new years eve in Australia was being deliciously scared to death of a ‘ghost’ – our hosts’ polish grandma in a sheet- come roaring out of the scrub in the dark corners the light from the bonfire couldn’t reach. We all ran screaming. I still love to remember this.

i am filing this idea away in the “i want to do this when im a mom someday!” you are way too cute, and so creative.the way you enjoy little moments and describe them in every post makes me cry every time!

That’s the cutest most magical kid party ever! I just want to be 3 again to be part of it!! I’ll take notes to throw such a great party for my girl in a couple of years. You have such an amazing way of creating unforgettable memories for your girls, such an inspiration.XO, Caro

How wondrous! “Santa”‘was ruined for me at the ripe old age of 3. I’m working overtime to make sure my littles believe until it’s embarrassing. I’m definitely stealing this idea for next year! Thanks for contributing to the magic of Christmas!

I am going to HAVE to do this for my future children. What lucky girls to have a mama like you! These girls will remember this for the rest of their lives… talking about it when they are mamas themselves. Beautiful work Kelle!

Absolutely STUNNING!! You did an amazing job mama! This is a memory these girls are never going to forget <3 and what an amazing brother, err, elf, for stopping by to make such an exciting treasure hunt for the girls! Have you thought about having an elf come and stay with the girls till Christmas? The Elf on the Shelf is gaining popularity, because it’s so widely available, but the whole idea that the elf has come to spy on the kids for Santa didn’t appeal to me, and then the kids are not supposed to touch it either. What fun is that? We chose to do the Elf Magic elves, where the children are encouraged to take the elves along on their daily adventures, and the elves come alive for their own adventures during the night. This is our 4th year doing this, and our children, enjoy it immensely! Lately our elves have had marshmallow fights in the living room, zip lined through the house decorating with tons of candy canes, went joyriding in our car and brought home doughnuts for everyone (the little stinkers took a tiny little bite out of every one of them first though!), and in the morning the kids will wake to find the elves have left a huge mess of tissue paper and gift bags around the living room while gift wraping themselves, and hiding somewhere in the mess. 🙂 http://www.elf-magic.com/ You can check their website to see if there are any “North Pole Supply Posts” near you where you can purchase the elves, you can read about many of the elves “Elfcapades”. Also, a friend recently started a group on Facebook called Elfcapades-What our elves have done, for host families to share their adventures.

You’ve reminded me of how special this time of year can truly be and how amazing my childhood Christmases really were. You’re an inspiration and you make me want to be a mommy sooner rather than later!

what a great night to be a little girl. looks like so much fun. absolutely adoreable. love every minute of it. the photos. the desserts. the hunt. just perfect. you should be a party planner. i bet it is a party the girls will never forget. luv the pjs. hats. amazing. (:

Wow….wow….wow. Honestly, where do you come up with these ideas?! And not even just that, how do you find the time to do all of this?! The girls who came to the party are so lucky, and Lainey and Nella are even luckier to have such an amazing mama…what wonderful memories 🙂

Somewhere in the middle of the elf running around and those amazing milk jars you made I was waiting for the pic of the unicorn that flew over your house! WOW! What an amazing party and such great memories. When your girls are older and tell these childhood stories people are going to look at them with their jaws on the ground!

OK,You are FREAKING AMAZING!!!! My heart is pounding through my chest. I am crying..happy tears for those children! The gift you give these children is just unreal..amazing..I have no words. Have a wonderful holiday season,friend in my head 🙂 xoxo

Besides Nella’s birth story – which got me hooked… This is my favorite post ever! I have slowly perused the pictures 3 times now, tearing up, just knowing what a bit of magic you have added to each of those little ones lives. And to their mamas. What precious precious memories! Merry Christmas!

Wow, it’s actually amazing, absolutely amazing how much great fun that party seems like, you should be really proud of yourself guys, it seems like it was an absolutely wonderful time, honestly. Your ideas are so genius, I’d love to go to a party like this!

Whoa…it. was. magic. Waterworks, on! I am so doing this for my boys. You are brilliant, amazing, genius and inspired. I adore every single detail…Now, can you hire your dad out for book readings? XOXO..thanks for reminding me each week what IT is all about. Many blessings to you and some sleep, because given this magical memory, I know you have not had much in the last week…tending to the work of unicorns (and reindeer) happens best in the wee hours of the night, ya know?

You seriously are an amazing mom! I was crying reading about how the girls reacted because it IS so magical! Your babies will forever remember what an awesome childhood they had and these memories will last forever!

Holy smokes! Your phone photos were awesome but don’t hold a candle to the bright, awesomeness of that party! So fun and magical. I’d love to talk to Lainey about it. I bet she is over-the-moon giddy. xo

I’m not sure if it’s the third trimester hormones, or just witnessing the love that you have for your family, but I’ve definitely got alligator tears rolling down my face. What an amazing night it looks to have been!

Oh.my.gosh!! 🙂 Such magic you created for those little girls! Heck – at the ripe old age of 61, I’d have been so totally enthralled to be a guest! I can only imagine how excited your little guests must have been!

Who needs the magic of Disney when they could come to your house?? What an awesome looking event….the hours and time you must have spent planning were lots but I’m sure it was just a magical evening!!!! Thanks for inspiring!!!

W O W !!! How DO you do it all, seemingly? That party – it made me wish I was a little kid and was invited! I so envy this..You are so inspiring and awesome. I love that Papa Rik was there too. (lovin’ Papa Rik)… It all looks so magical and just perfect! And the owl hat – oh my! my tiny granddaughter..well, her room and everything is done by her mommy in OWLS. She would look so cute in the hat! Just like Nella does.. love to you, Kelle, and all of your family, incl papa rik. Love from the Blog Mama~

Oh, oh oh the parties you throw…Can I please be your neighbour? I can’t wait until my daughter is just a little bit older with some friends that we can throw some awesome parties like that. Amazing and magical…just like Christmas should be.

That party looks like it came straight out of a storybook! You seriously need to write a book for other moms about how to put fun crafts and activities together. Lainey and Nella are so blessed to have you as their mom!

Wowser! We have 3 little kids with Birthdays just before Christmas…making the season a little more celebratory, but also crazy….anyway Im planning on borrowing some of these ideas for their party – just too cute & too special not to! Thanks for the inspiration 🙂

This post warmed my heart. I’ve been trying to get into the Christmas spirit, and this just kicked it into high gear. I may have to steal this idea and party with my nieces next year. Thanks for the lovely idea! Oh…and Merry Christmas! 🙂

Oh, Kelle… you had me in tears with your North Pole party! I truly hope that I one day live in a neighborhood like yours where we have such wonderful memories to make together… until then, I just rock it out with my little one!!

This is just…so fantastic. I cried while reading it. This is my first holiday season truly away from home in the Midwest (I’m in LA), and last night when I watched Elf it suddenly hit me: there will be no snow this year in the weeks leading up to December 25. Thankfully I’ll be going home for five days for Christmas to celebrate, but until then, I’m stuck trying to make sense of the sunshine and warmth and trying to find a place for this whole holiday season to exist in harmony with them. Anyway. Your posts make me want a home, so thank you for giving me the inspiration to strive to get myself outta this apartment. Your blog is my favorite. Sending much love from California.

I love everything about this idea. You are so creative and such a wonderful party hostess. I love planning the events, and I might have to tuck this idea away for next year when I’m not out of my mind from exhaustion. Corah Beth was born on November 21st, so I’m learning to juggle two children and sleep deprivation. Some days I soar and other days I crash.

Oh my goodness, that is the best idea I think I’ve ever seen! You are just a crafting genius! You inspire my own Christmas craze- I love it! This time if year is supposed to be magical. I know that if I had gone to one of those parties when I was little, I would never have forgotten it! They will forever remember that special night. I’m saving this as an idea for my own kids one day! 🙂

i was teary-eyed just reading and gazing at your amamzing photos of such a fun and memorable Christmasy evening!! what an incredible time it looks like! sounds like it was a big hit and will have to be a yearly tradition 🙂

OMG! Cuteness overload! I soooo wanna go to the North Pole right now! Seriously, your next book should be on how to throw children’s parties…Martha Stewart eat your heart how…better yet…Martha who? Let’s take pre orders NOW!

Amazing. Beautiful. All of those adorable little faces will never forget this night. What memories!!! Love all of the details and I am definitely borrowing the reindeer food one this year! Thanks for another wonderful window into your world.

You are such an inspiration to moms around the world! My daughter would LOVE this and so would her friends! This time of year is so sentimental and I would love to start a new tradition for her. Such a great idea!

This is the cutest thing ever. I hardly comment on your posts, but couldn’t hold back today. WOW! Just curious, did Nella “get it”? Addison is Nella’s age (with ds as well) and I want to make Christmas special for her, but I’m just not sure how much she’ll understand.

OMG this has to be the cutest party idea ever! It makes me want to have a little girl one day to do this with. Its just awesome. And all the details you put into it make the holiday’s all that more magical for your girls. Kudos!!

Cute cute adorable cute awesome details…did I mention the details were cute? Lovely party, great execution. The elf pushes this one into the super fab category! Somebody needs to throw YOU a fab party.

Every time you throw an awesome party and post about it, I have to call my sister-in-law and say “SERIOUSLY! Did you see Kelle’s post?!? She outdid herself, I need to have a party.” Yep, we refer to you like a sister.

Kelle…… oh my goodness, you have my creative juices a flowing!!!! Reid’s birthday is December 28th and to this date we have not really ever had a birthday with friends, just a family party, so JUST LAST NIGHT I was googling ideas for a “Snow Party” and was thinking of having snow brought in (from our local ice company) and dumped on our front yard here in southern CA… where the chances of it snowing on its own are zippo!! ;). But…. our preschool does this each year in Feb… so thought it is something we could probably swing…. but was not sure just what else I would do…. NOW I TOTALLY KNOW!!! 🙂 I am sketching out places in my head even as I type for the Santa’s reindeer food table…. lol!!!

THANK YOU, THANK YOU…. for sharing!!!!! I have always felt that the “date” of his birthday is such a hard time of the year to have a party…. but now I am so excited about it!!!!

You and your beautiful girls always make me smile! I was blown away by the awesomeness of the North Pole, the smiles of your girls made my day! By the way, the elf was just the icing on the cake and pretty much the coolest most exciting thing to happen to me all weekend, and I wasn’t even there!!! I’m going to have a great day at work today thinking of how cute your girls are and how inspiring you are!

Honestly- I’m a bit misty eyed by this post. What a beautiful memory for your girls to cherish. I’m grateful for the heaping dose of inspiration this just was for me. Time to get crackin’ on some special traditions/memories of our own.

Wow what a great idea! I love it -all – My daughter would love this so much. What great magical memories you are making for your girls! I think we are going to make some reindeer food this year – some one gave us some last year and my daughter loved it! Where did you get the bottles for the milk? They are so cute!

This has to be my most favorite post that you have ever written! Loved the idea, loved all the “details”, loved the photos that captured such an awesome evening! You created something those little girls will remember forever! Love that 🙂

i want to come to your parties! that was probably the cutest thing i’ve ever seen….i’m sure the girls were absolutely entranced by their magical evening….everything looked so beautiful….i would love to come to the north pole at your house! 🙂 brilliant ideas….

You are truly an inspiration!! What an amazing mom you are, I would have loved to have had a mom like you growing up. Your girls will have such incredible stories to share as they get older. I am honored just to be able to read about it!! 🙂

I have no words for this wonderful party idea – you are the best mom (and dad) and your kids will never, ever forget those magical moments. I wonder if my 15 yr. old twins, 18 and 21 yr. olds would like a party like that? Hmmmm…..

Oh my gosh – that is just about the most wonderful party I’ve ever seen/read about. How incredibly magical! What a fantastic gift to your girls & their friends (& their Mamas!) What an amazing evening! Thank you for sharing all your great ideas!

Can you be my Momma? Seriously after a craptastic year I am seriously lacking in the Christmas spirt department. This changed that. Seeing the magic in all of those beautiful eyes made me realize that I am cheating my kid out of memories. She could care less about gifts but to hear her say it doesn’t even feel like Christmas broke my heart. Thanks Kelli for the kick in the A@@. I will be flying my Christmas freak flag tomorrow. She is going to come home to a Christmas decorated house tomorrow come hell or high water.

I want to be a lil kid again and be invited to your parties :o) They ALL look so fun and definitely memorable for all. I admire your creativity and how you are making so many fond memories for your family and friends.

WOW! WOW! WOW! You are simply the BEST!!! You really should have won that TV show on Oprah’s OWN!! Magical memories for all those sweet little girls and their Mamas!! Thanks for sharing all your ideas with all of us!…more magical nights at the North Pole will most definitely be created!!!…I’m looking forward to creating one of my own to share with family and friends!! Your blog is such a blessing in so many magical ways!!!

I want my daughter to be friends with your girls so bad. I am so delighted by just seeing the images of this party, I can’t even imagine how amazing it must have been to watch all of your girls just soak in all that magic.

What an awesome, exciting, wonderful party! I so wish I was there! It made be all giddy and want to have a North Pole party next year with my kids! How fun! You are so creative and build the most awesome, amazing memories with your kids. That’s the kind of mom I inspire to be. Thanks for being someone I can look up to. Merry Christmas!! 🙂

That was so incredibly cute! Just today (sunday) we through a winter wonder land bbq for my friend who’s bday is on tuesday. me and my friend went to the 99 cent store and bought a bunch of fun decorations and decorated her back yard as a surprise! we closed her eyes and took her outside! she loved it! it made us so happy!!!! the best part of it all was these little snowmen who light up in crazy bright colors hee hee! that and my son sneaking his own “present” into the bday girls bag of presents. we gave her a pretty shall and a sweater and in the bottom of the bag she sees something, she pulls it out and in her hand she holds a small rock and a plastic outlet cover! lol! i never saw my son do that! he’s two! and he snuck those in while i wasn’t looking! he did keep telling me “mama, that’s rita’s present birthday” and i kept saying “yes, yes, don’t mess with it okay?” it was so sweet! especially since he wasn’t at the bbq. my friend rita said that was the best part of the whole day! this was a really good weekend 🙂

I can see why you are still smiling! That’s not just for your girls. That’s for the mamas too! This post made me wish I had been at the party looking for Santa’s lost treasures. You were born to party!

I love that your girls is a few years older than mine because I really cannot wait to do something like this. Thank you for being my crafty mama inspiration!

PS – definitely love that I actually had my volume up tonight because I am TOTALLY enjoying this Sufjan Stevens rendition of “Joy to the World” – I feel like you’ve just pulled me out of my Christmas music funk!

Kelle, what an amazing party! Lainey and Nella are so blessed to have you. I’m sure Lainey will remember this night always and forever. I can’t wait to do something like this for my little kiddo when she gets a little older!

What a beautiful party! Wow, I wish I create such a masterpiece with my son and his friends! We’re definitely going to try and make the reindeer food, how fun! Oh and the song brought tears to my eyes. It’s my favorite Christmas song. Have you seen Meet Me In St. Louis? It’s in that movie…a tear jerker! Thanks for the fabulous post!

Oh COME ON!!!!! That’s the cutest thing I have ever seen. I can barely get my tree decorated-let alone even begin to THINK about having a party of that caliber. What an awesome idea and memories created. You seriously rock.

I was giddy with excitement reading this post! That has to be the best Christmas party/event I’ve ever seen in my life! God has truly gifted you with creative talent, my friend! Thank you for sharing! It was a joy to share!!!

I loved this post so much I almost started crying! Your kids are some of the most beautiful little girls I have ever seen! I love your blog!I can’t wait to have children of my own, and try this one day!

I absolutely love this idea of a party. You always seem to have the best time with all your friends and their girls who are close in age with Lainey and Nella. I have to admit….I’m a little jealous that we don’t have more friends that have children our kids age so we can do more fun things like this.

What a magical childhood you are giving your babies. Thank you for sharing it with all of us. And I love the random photo dump that usually contains pics of the places Nella can fall asleep. Girl is amazing.

My jaw just dropped looking at those pictures. You are such an amazing mom, party planner, Santa’s helper, etc! How freaking special was that?! Your house was gorgeous! And the elf?! What an ingenious touch! You are my constant mommy inspiration!

Oh my goodness! That is the cutest and most creative party I have ever seen. Wow, it looks so magical and the girls look thrilled. The elf darting by must have been the best…sounds like a little girls dream party!

One of my favorite post Kelly…..Not only you made those little girls a night to always remember and talk about for life…you also made my day…i felt part of the party the cool thing I was in my jammy when I read and was drinking coffee too!!!! Definitely a white xmas Florida style!

Seriously in tears over here too!! Just the pictures come to life so well. You are such an amazing mother who does so much for your girls. I am in awe of how amazing that little party was. I think we are going to use the reindeer food idea for my kids this year. Thanks!

That is the cutest thing I have ever seen. So, so creative and imaginative. I am so lovin’ it.

The elf just put it over the top for me. When I saw the picture and read that part of the story, I said out loud, “That is so cute!” My 4 yr old runs over asking what was cute. I showed him the elf and told him someone caught a elf on camera. His comment? “Who is wearing the elf costume?” Too smart for his own good. lol I need to be more convincing I guess.

My hat is totally off: what a marvel you created, what love it shows!That’s just plain wonderful of you and I’m impressed and inspired, as always.You are a great mother Kelle.Really great, in every way!

I love those candy cane cookies. I make the same ones. Sometimes, though, don’t have the patience to wrap the two colors together just to have them break, so sometimes I roll the two colors together, a la play doh snakes, and get almost a tie dye looking candy cane. It’s all good- because they are sooooo dang good!

I would love to figure out how to print labels so I can make those adorable pillow sprays. Printer technology and I don’t get along.

Wow… Your posts never cease to amaze me. The Christmas party is great beyond words… So cute, fun, nostalgic, you name it. I love reading your blog. It always makes me sigh with happiness and it leaves you with a “warm fuzzy” feeling. Kudos. 🙂

you created the magic of christmas kel….a night our girls will never forget. sammy is misting her room each night with her sweet dream spray and asking for her milk to be not just cold, but “north pole” cold. thanks for all the fun. we loved every minute of it. (and the red glitter that is still in sammy’s hair reminds us too, hehehe) xoxo

But what I love most is how evident your joy in your children is. It’s so wonderful!!! I live with a bit of an Eeyore of a husband. Our kids are the same age and I often hear the negative aspects of parenting young children. I’m by nature quite positive, and I find your site so inspiring and uplifting!

Wow! That is just about the sweetest party I’ve ever seen and brought back some wonderful childhood Christmas memories! Would it be okay if I shared your post on my blog and linked it? What wonderful memories. Those sweet girls will never forget that night!

I couldn’t wait to see the pictures from this magical night; not only for the beauty of them and seeing details here for the first time, but to hear you put words to the magic that night everyone experienced but no one could touch. Thank you for including my little girl in such a special night.

What an absoloutely fabulous party! My daughter Bridget will celebrate her first birthday this Christmas day and I have been wondering how we will make her day special as she grows older. A party like this one day will be a fantastic memory for everyone involved. You are such a clever mama.

Hi Kelle! I’m a long time reader but I’ve never commented before and I think it is about time I leave some love! I want to thank you for all of the amazing party ideas you give me on your wonderful blog! I am just a student as of now, but one day when I am a “grown up” and host parties and have babies, I know where I’m going to get party planning tips from! I’m also in school to become a special education teacher and your little Nella is a reminder why I am going into special education and how much kids need like her need teachers who care! You’re such a good mama. I’m sure she is going to absolutely strive in her life and achieve all of her goals! I don’t know if you have ever seen this YouTube video about Down Syndrome, but it is one of the most inspirational videos I have ever seen. You should watch it!

Hi Kelle I’m your faithfull follower from the Dominican Republic. I follow you on facebook, and of course I’ve been reading your blog since probably two years ago, and I never dared to write you a comment, but this party at the north pole just blowed my mind!! I just love your creativity!! I very much wish I could be your neighbor and bring my little girls to the party you throw! I was crying just by watching the pictures and by imagening all the little faces with all the magical things you had there!! congratulations again!! and I hope you and your family have a very merry christmas!! Letty Reynoso.

This is one of my absolute favorite posts! I hope you will not be offended when I steal your idea one day (I do not have kids yet, but when I do… I pray I am as wonderful of a mother as you are!). I think you gave those girls (and their mamas) a day they will absolutely never forget!

I really love this idea. HOWEVER, I use sprinkles instead of glitter in my Reindeer Food because if you throw the reindeer food on your grass for the Reindeer, glitter can harm or kill the birds if they eat it…you can ask any vet or vet tech but glitter will harm the birds. I learned this from a vet.

Kelle, you had me in tears on this post. What a awesome mama you are to these girls (& their friends)…creating these wonderful memories they are sure to NEVER forget. You hit a homerun! Way to go, Mama!!!!!

By the way- you could totally have a side business as a children’s party planner. You really seem to have a knack for pulling together great ideas that both look great and are fun at an affordable price, which is what we all want to do for our kids come party time.

Hi Kelle,I know the holidays have passed, but my wheels are already turning for Christmas. I would love to know where you got your incredible invitations for the North Pole party…is it a downloadable print, or a actual website? Any help would be MUCH appreciated!!

It’s a talented, spirited person that can bring a complete stranger to tears with nothing more than written words and a few magical photos. Thank you for being that person and for being willing to share just a little of your magic!

I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE this party idea!!! How creative and memorable! I might just have to do something like this for Christmas this year!! I just came across your blog on pinterest and I am so glad I did! I will definitely start following you now! Thanks for the inspiration

What a wonderful lifetime memory you created for these girls. God bless you for that! I cried just looking thru the pics and captions. You are truly blessed with a creative mind. Thanks so much for sharing.

What a wonderful lifetime memory you created for these girls. God bless you for that! I cried just looking thru the pics and captions. You are truly blessed with a creative mind. Thanks so much for sharing.

I am in the process of planning a party for my grandchildren and great nieces and nephews. I was looking at the pics and comments and can not find a download for the reindeer food table. Were you able to download and create a file that we could use?

I just found your party via Pinterest, and I have to admit, I might have cried a little. This is the cutest party…EVER. Seeing stuff like this makes me wish I had little ones around at Christmas (maybe someday!). Love everything you did, fantastic!!

I love this, great and so detailed. I plan on doing a party like this and you have made it so easy with all that you have posted. Could you please tell me what your discription was for the red and silver glitter, oats, and raisins. Thanks you.

Kelle, could you please share the cute little sayings that you used on the reindeer food bar? I’m in charge of reindeer food for my sons preschool party and I can see you did more then what each thing is. I would be eternally grateful if you would share that with me. Either on here, or email me at raisingdudes@yahoo.com

By the way, I have been reading your blog since you brought adorable nella in this world. You have a beautiful family and are such a wonderful person yourself. You inspire me to be a better mother and a better person. Congrats on your little boy! Can’t wait to meet him!

I would absolutely love to see the reindeer food up close and what you put. This is the cutest idea! Thank you so much for showing. This party looks fantastic. If you prefer to email my email is jlburrage@hotmail.com. THANK YOU!

Love this idea. I plan on doing the reindeer food with my first graders. Would you share your “labels” for the food with me. I can see one that says Flying powder ” secret magic ingredient that makes the reindeer fly. Would love the others . Thanks

I know youve been asked a lit but could you please email me and tell me what the reindeer food signs say. I’m throwing a breakfast with Santa for the kids of the parents at my work and figured this would be a great idea as well :)). Kritt1022@gmail.com. thank you so much!!!

Hi Kelle! I absolutely LOVE all the magic that you’ve inspired in this post. I’m hoping to incorporate a bit of it with my kindergarten students tomorrow at their Christmas party. I was wondering if you would be so kind as to share the sayings for the Reindeer Feeding Bar with me, please? I do believe that my students would LOVE this! Thank you so much. Pleae feel free to e-mail them to me at: catrisha_tittle@yahoo.com

Awww! I just read this and fell in love! My lil girl is going to be 3 this Christmas and will be an official “Big Sister” (baby due August 22, 2013)…I think I am going to try and do something like this 🙂 This year every time she sees someone older with a bushy white beard she yells out excitedly, “SANNA CAUSE!!” LOL does not matter if we are in the store or in the car or at home watching TV… Love your blog, you have a beautiful family!!love from us to ya’ll – crystal 🙂

This. Is. ADORABLE. I’m so in love with this. I LOVE the bit about the elf in the street! When my daughter was young we would hide her presents around the living room on Christmas morning with a clue from one gift to the next, so that she would have to figure out where the next gift is. Now that she’s a teenager and I’m in menopause we don’t have quite as much fun, though. Our relationship has grown a bit strained and I miss these days so much. We did watch a great documentary together that really helped us understand what I’m going through, and I feel like my daughter is my friend again. The film was called “Hot Flash Havoc” and I would highly recommend it, you can check it out here: http://bit.ly/11XQcWS if you’re interested.

I absolutely love this idea! I love your invitation…is there anyway that you can share your template with me? You have the best vintage designs! Thank you so much for sharing this beautiful, magical night with us.

Can you detail a little about how you had the girls open gifts (took a number, brought for a specific person, just let them grab one from pile, etc?!) I’m planning alittle party and need some tips!! Also, how did you plan the scavenger hunt?

Just saw your post and am throwing a north pole party at my church on Friday. You did a fantastic job. wondered if you could tell me what the other items on the Reindeer Food list said. It was such a cute idea. thanks for posting.

I have to say I have never left a comment on anyone’s post on Pinterest before but your party was so wonderful, I had to say something!! You are so creative! I absolutely LOVE all your ideas and your pictures are great too! I am completely inspired to TRY to recreate your party at my house this December!